Vegetarian Star

Amanda Cohen

Amanda Cohen, founder and owner of Dirt Candy, has been named “Chef of the Month” at the Veg Cooking Blog.

Dirt Candy is an all vegetarian restaurant in New York City and Cohen was received prestige for her work at the restaurant.

Veg Cooking sat down with Cohen to discuss all things veggie and here are some of Amanda’s thoughts:

Lube it up:
Splurge on good oils. Truffle oil, almond oil, hazelnut oil, or pistachio oil are all really nice ways to finish off a dish. You can drizzle them over just about anything, cooked or raw, and they add an extra, savory dimension.

On Favorite Veg Ingredients:
Right now, what I’m really into are potatoes. And even though beet season is wrapping up, I’ll probably stay obsessed with them until the year’s last beet is pulled up out of the dirt.

On Vegan Cooking:
Everything at Dirt Candy comes in a vegan and a non-vegan version, and I really like skipping back and forth between vegan and vegetarian cooking. Vegan cooking is challenging in a way that’s a lot of fun. It wakes your brain up. And I actually think that the Orange Tofu we serve is better vegan (we use coconut milk in the sauce instead of butter).

On Producing Great Vegetarian Dishes
Vegetarian food should be about what you can eat, not what you can’t. Aping the “protein, sauce, side of veg” format of the standard meat dish just reminds omnivorous diners of what they’re not eating, and it doesn’t do justice to vegetables, fruits, grains, and all the other fun stuff we get to play with. To me, breaking the “meat replacement” mold is the most important element in cooking great vegetarian food.

Read the entire interview with Amanda at vegcooking.com.

Possibly Related Posts:

• Chrissy Teigen Failed Vegan Experiment
• Mia Evans Is A “Masterchef Junior” Vegetarian Star
• Holly Madison Enjoys Vegan Smoothie From M Cafe In Beverly Hills
• Controversy Over Pro-Vegeterian Curriculum In Schools
• Ellie Goulding Creates Protein Bar “Everlasting Joy” With GoMacro